Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to incorporating remote communication with oilfield tubular handling apparatus.
Description of the Related Art
In wellbore construction and completion operations, a wellbore is initially formed to access hydrocarbon-bearing formations (i.e., crude oil and/or natural gas) by the use of drilling. Drilling is accomplished by utilizing a drill bit that is mounted on the end of a drill support member, commonly known as a drill string. To drill within the wellbore to a predetermined depth, the drill string is often rotated by a top drive or rotary table on a surface platform or rig, or by a downhole motor mounted towards the lower end of the drill string. After drilling to a predetermined depth, the drill string and drill bit are removed and a section of casing is lowered into the wellbore. An annulus is thus formed between the string of casing and the formation. The casing string is temporarily hung from the surface of the well. A cementing operation is then conducted in order to fill the annular area with cement. The casing string is cemented into the wellbore by circulating cement into the annulus defined between the outer wall of the casing and the borehole. The combination of cement and casing strengthens the wellbore and facilitates the isolation of certain areas of the formation behind the casing for the production of hydrocarbons.
It is common to employ more than one string of casing or liner in a wellbore. In this respect, the wellbore is drilled to a first designated depth with a drill bit on a drill string. The drill string is removed. A first string of casing is then run into the wellbore and set in the drilled out portion of the wellbore, and cement is circulated into the annulus behind the casing string. Next, the wellbore is drilled to a second designated depth, and a second string of casing or liner, is run into the drilled out portion of the wellbore. If the second string is a liner, the liner string is set at a depth such that the upper portion of the second liner string overlaps the lower portion of the first string of casing. The second liner string is then fixed, or “hung” off of the existing casing using a liner hanger to fix the new string of liner in the wellbore. The second liner string is then cemented. A tie-back casing string may then be landed in a polished bore receptacle (PBR) of the second liner string so that the bore diameter is constant through the liner to the surface. This process is typically repeated with additional liner strings until the well has been drilled to total depth. As more casing or liner strings are set in the wellbore, the casing or liner strings become progressively smaller in diameter in order to fit within the previous casing string. In this manner, wells are typically formed with two or more strings of casing and/or liner of an ever-decreasing diameter.
Signal communications at the drilling system may comprise communicating upwards or downwards from the rig floor. For example, signal communications upwards may comprise the control of a cementing head operation (e.g., actuation). Signal communications downwards may comprise the activation of tools and their confirmation (e.g., hole opening tools, liner hangers, and packers). Actuation may be performed via umbilicals, for example, via pressure spikes or the dropping of balls, darts, or radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags.